HALF MOON BAY (KCBS) – The future of California’s most well-known – if not totally controversial – surf competition has been thrown into doubt, now that a Silicon Valley company has announced it will no longer be the primary sponsor of Mavericks.

KCBS’ Chris Filippi Reports:

Barracuda Networks has pulled out, reportedly amid tension with members of the Half Moon Bay Surf Group over how to produce the event.

Additionally, the family of Jay Moriarity, the Santa Cruz surfer who died at age 22 in an unrelated diving accident, has asked that his name no longer be associated with the contest, which had been dubbed The Jay at Maverick’s Big Wave Invitational.

These latest developments come after a winter without the annual big wave competition.

“We just didn’t have the right people over here doing the right things to make it happen the way it should,” summed up Mavericks pioneer Jeff Clerk, who is not affiliated with the Half Moon Bay Surf Group. “Maybe it’s just a sign that we’ll just go back to surfing it the way we did, for the fun of it and not worry about all the stuff that goes on, you know, creating such a scene.”

“It’s just one of the greatest waves on the planet and to have so much drama around it, it just ruins it,” lamented Clark, who added he wouldn’t be opposed to a break in the action. “Everybody would be better off taking a hiatus and really sit back and do it for the love of it and just enjoy Mavericks.”

Members of the Half Moon Bay Surf Group, on the other hand, indicated they would regroup and get up and running again, under a different name and with a new surf competition sponsor.